New Grump of the Day

[Penners]

Bad luck, Joss. In my experience, nothing concentrates a builder's mind more than a threat of money being withheld.

 

[jocelyn plummer]

He had the cheek to ask for full and final payment by a certain date---OH decided to pay up ----but he did say that he was settling up in good faith that he -the builder- would come along after Christmas to put it right---builder is now working for a friend of mine whose Mother has just bought a property round the corner in need of immediate updating within a 4 week deadline because her stuff is in storage, so I am treading, in an unusually ( for me) careful way--one more week to go and then I shall pounce.

 

[malcolm]

I've had a couple of bad tradesmen but have never asked them back to fix their stuff. I reckon I am better rid of them. It is unlikely their intellect or work ethic will improve when asked to fix their mess on what they see as their own time. Better for your sanity finding someone who knows how to do the job. That way you can be pleased by the result.

 

[paulc]

I've also had bad "tradesmen" in to do a couple of jobs - Once they had left, redid the work myself. I figured I couldn't be any worse, and with a bit of effort, probably better.

 

[JanJonWestWales]

just got a quote for floorboards for the attic room I am finishing.
20' x 16' (room is 16x16, but need extra for landing and to make a door)...12" wide, inch thick, Pine
£780+VAT, so close to a £1000 for wood !!!
I have used the same local supplier over the years, but feel like i'm being ripped off grrrrr

 

[Feltwell]

Ouch - mind you, those are wide boards, will look fantastic but I guess their scarcity bumps the price up.

Are narrower boards or reclaim an option? At that width reclaimed may be even more expensive I guess, plus there's all the old damage & nail holes to deal with.

 

[JanJonWestWales]

Ouch - mind you, those are wide boards, will look fantastic but I guess their scarcity bumps the price up.

Are narrower boards or reclaim an option? At that width reclaimed may be even more expensive I guess, plus there's all the old damage & nail holes to deal with.

They are what we have used elsewhere throughout the bedrooms and library, so want to keep it consistent,
I did consider reclaimed, but last time I tried, they weren't cheap either, and to your point, after de-nailing, and repairing would have been harder work. The look may have suited the house better, but to be honest the 12"wide boards do look great.

Not much choice eh !....time to suck it up, and admire them when they're down

 

[Feltwell]

Yep - if you skimp you'll regret it every time you look down. I bet they will look great when they're laid. Photos on here would be good.... :wink:

 

[Penners]

12" wide, inch thick, Pine
£780+VAT, so close to a £1000 for wood !!!

Yes, it's undoubtedly the width that's bumping the price up, plus the species. 6-inch or 7-inch spruce would save you a chunk of money. In an attic room, does the board width matter that much?

 

[Feltwell]

Grump of the Day - should be decorating, but looking at and relying to PP posts is preferable. Why can't the server break again like it did yesterday and spare me the temptation eh????

Christ I hate decorating. I mean really, really loathe it. But not enough to pay someone else to do it.

:wink:

 

[Penners]

I'm with you, Feltwell - decorating is mind-numbing!

In fact, I firmly believe it's decorating that has contributed strongly to the popularity of PPUK over the years - the forum is a displacement activity for decorating.

Now - click the 'shut down' button and pick up that paintbrush :!:

 

[Feltwell]

I've been painting, honest!

I don't mind the painting bit, that can be quite therapeutic I find. It's the endless prep work on woodwork that drives me mad, but the quality of the end result depends so much upon it that a quality job has to be done. Right, get another coat on that sash before breakfast!

 

[Penners]

Before breakfast?!

I told you to get on with the decorating - I didn't tell you to go stark, raving mad!

 

[Feltwell]

I've not even got any KitKats in

Good job the kettle works and we have plenty of tea bags and milk, otherwise I can assure you no work would happen. I can't work without regular mugs of strong tea.

 

[a twig]

Matrimonial Division of Gardening Labour...

My wife is a "keen gardener" - or so she tells everyone.

Every spring, my wife will venture out to buy seeds, and some more tools to add to her collection of gardening implements that is gathering dust in the shed and utility.

We have many lovely hand forks, trowels, floral patterned gardening gloves, watering cans, kneeling pads etc - all for the one day of the year where she ventures out into the garden. She will take ownership of a bed that I have dug and weeded thoroughly the week previously, plant a few lines of vegetables, and then retire inside again.

At which point the weeding and watering for the rest of the year, and ultimately harvesting when required all then falls back into my domain. When said vegetables are produced at a dinner party etc, my wife happily chatters on about how she grew these in the garden herself. :lol:

This year I am drawing a line and as of this week have made plans to extend the patio, and while I'm there, turf over the vegetable patch. I'll let you know how it goes...

 

[JanJonWestWales]

Yep - if you skimp you'll regret it every time you look down. I bet they will look great when they're laid. Photos on here would be good.... :wink:

We've used 12" boards throught the project, so the attic bedroom is the last room.
My wifes design approach has been, lightest boards in the attic rooms (for maximum light), darker in the first floor bedrooms, and darkest on the ground floor

I will take some close-ups, but this shows how lovely they look (the library as was)

I guess this no longer constitutes a grump !

 

[Penners]

I've not even got any KitKats in

Oh, for goodness' sake, Feltwell, there's a self-inflicted wound if ever there was one!

When KitKats are available in catering packs of 48, there's no excuse for such inefficiency. And 48 of them will last you a good... oooh... maybe 2 weeks?

http://www.oasisproducts.co.uk/product/nestle-4-finger-kitkat/

 

[Feltwell]

Picture this. You have a large sash window to cut new staff bead for today. The window is far enough out of square to make 45 degree mitres not quite good enough, so much measuring and trips to & fro to the garage ensue, trimming little bits off, getting the angles just right. It all fits perfectly - mitres are nice & tight - as you finish the last piece and stand back to admire your handiwork.

Then you spot that the beads don't seem to quite align properly at the back. What's going on? How can that be?

Then you remember that you had 2 different sizes of staff bead in your stock in the garage - only 2.5mm difference in depth, just enough to not be obvious as you picked them out, and cut 3 of your lengths from the wrong size beads :roll:

Still, at least they served as a pattern for cutting from the right size! :wink:

 

[Feltwell]

I will take some close-ups, but this shows how lovely they look (the library as was)

Very nice - very nice indeed.

 

[Penners]

cut 3 of your lengths from the wrong size beads

Bad luck, Feltwell. I think we've all been there/done that in some form or another.

I bet you said "oh bother!" (or words to that effect).